Red Magic - Jean Rabe [7]
"Harper alone?" the gnoll spat. "Harper have gold? Harper important? Harper have friends near?" He waved his spear for emphasis.
"I'm alone, as agreed. I'm called Galvin. You don't need to know anything else about me."
Galvin pulled the collar of his tunic down to let Mudwort see the silver neck chain from which dangled a miniature crescent moon affixed to a silver harp. The charm flashed in the moonlight and made the gnoll wonder how much it was worth.
"Harper symbol," Mudwort verified.
Galvin covered the neck chain and tossed the gnoll a black velvet bag. Mudwort's thick, hairy fingers grabbed for it but missed, and it dropped to the ground with a soft thud. Mudwort fell to examine the contents like a wolf devouring a fresh kill. Running his fingers over each gold coin he pulled from the bag, he attempted to count it. The gnoll enjoyed spying; he collected regular pay from Maligor and from other Red Wizards who paid for information about his master. This was the first time he had spied for someone other than a wizard-and had gone beyond Thay's boundaries to do so.
Giving up on getting an exact tally of the coins, the gnoll scooped the gold back into the bag and cradled it in his hand, trying to weigh it to gauge its value. After a moment, Mudwort rose, brusquely wiped a long strand of saliva away from his jaws, and growled at the Harper.
"Not enough. My talk costs more, Galvin!"
"That's just to get your tongue moving," the Harper answered. "There'll be more if your 'talk' is useful." The gold belonged to the Aglarond council, which had asked Galvin to contact the spy. There were rumors of Thayvian forces growing, and the council wondered if Aglarond, Thay's neighbor to the west, could be a target. The council members needed to know if they should prepare for war.
The Harper disliked wars. No matter who won, they caused a senseless loss of life. And the land, which would be soaked with blood by the end of the battle, was usually the greatest casualty.
The gnoll interrupted the Harper's thoughts. "Mudwort knows valuable things. Mudwort knows that Red Wizard Maligor wants land. Maligor is greedy and thinks he needs more land than other wizards have."
The gnoll pawed at a small cloud of gnats forming around his face. He glowered at Galvin and plopped down on a log, easing the burden from his callused feet. Balancing the spear across his lap for security, he pushed Galvin's money pouch into the dirty canvas sack that hung from his side.
"More gold now," Mudwort demanded.
"You'll have to do better than that," the Harper said evenly, planting himself in front of the gnoll and fixing his eyes on Mudwort's. "Who is Maligor?"
"A Red Wizard. I told you."
"Beyond that," the Harper persisted.
"Important," Mudwort spat. "Powerful. Maligor rich, too."
The druid sighed, quickly growing frustrated. "What does he look like?"
"Like other wizards. Maligor bald. Maligor old, wrinkled. Maligor wear red."
"Where is Maligor?" The druid moved closer.
"In Thay."
"I know that," Galvin spat. "Where in Thay?"
"In Am-roo-thar," Mudwort replied. "Am-roo-thar is a city in Thay."
Galvin began pacing in front of Mudwort, angry that the answers had to be pulled from the gnoll's feeble brain.
"What land does Maligor want?"
The gnoll pawed again at the growing cloud of gnats attracted by his saliva. "Don't know. Didn't ask."
"How is he going to get the land?"
Mudwort brightened and thumped his breast with his left fist. His smile revealed a row of yellowed, pointed teeth. "Gnolls get it for him," he answered proudly. "Maligor has many, many gnolls. Gnolls fierce warriors."
The gnoll eyed the Harper, trying to gauge the wealth the human carried while waiting for the next question. But the Harper remained quiet, rubbing his hairless chin in thought. The silence bothered the gnoll.
"Done now?" Mudwort's impatience surfaced. "Mudwort get more gold and Mudwort leave." The gnoll was worried; he had been away from Maligor's keep for several days and didn't want the wizard to discover